Exploration of the American Continent

The English had visited America at different times. But they had never stayed very long. John Cabot came to Newfoundland in 1498. In 1577 Sir Francis Drake sailed along the western coast of America on his voyage around the world. In 1583 a few men with Sir Humphrey Gilbert tried to settle in Newfoundland, but they found it too cold. Soon after Gilbert`s visit, Sir Walter Raleigh, another Englishman, thought of sending ships to the New World. The first people came over in 1585. They named the land Virginia. A second company came a little later. Neither was successful.

In the year 1606, some English people decided they did not like the way their king, James the First, was treating them. They formed a group, which they called the London Company, and made plans to sail for America. King James gave the company a charter, or the right to build a colony in the new land. The London Company sent three ships to America. For weeks the little boasts were tossed about like corks upon the ocean. Then, in April, 1607, the people saw the green shores of Chesapeake Bay. The ships sailed up the river, which the colonists named the James in honour of their king. About thirty miles up the James, the party landed. A fort and a few log houses were built, and the settlement was named Jamestown.

Life was very hard in the little colony. Nearly all of the men had come from the rich or well-to-do families in England. They had never had to work. These people believed the stories of the riches which, they had been told, lay everywhere in the New World. The Indians gave them some corn, but the colonists never had enough food. Many people died. But in 1610 ships and food came from England, and Jamestown was saved.

The colonists learned to grow tobacco. And soon ships filled with tobacco sailed for England and returned with things that the colony needed.

Twenty Negroes were brought to Jamestown in 1619 and sold to the tobacco planters. This was the beginning of slavery in America.

The States of the usa

The United States began as a nation of 13 states. These were the colonies which had broken away from Great Britain in 1776 and fought a six – year War for Independence. The original 13 colonies were then located in the area today occupied by 16 states were admitted to the union one by one.

The newest states are Alaska and Hawaii, admitted in 1959. Washington, in the District of Columbia, is the national capital. It was named in honour of George Washington, the first US president. The District of Columbia, which was named for Christopher Columbus, discoverer of America, is 60 square miles in area; and is not part of any state.

Many of the state lines look like they had been laid out according to a regular, squared pattern. Indeed, the whole country west of the original 13 states was surveyed in regular blocks, a mile square. This way of dividing the land is reflected in the borders of the states.

The Colonists Rise in Arms

The discovery of America resulted from the break-up of the feudal system, the rise of the nation, the revival of commerce, and the search for the trade routes to the riches of the East. Later, the long process of the English colonization of the New World was motivated by the desire for economic opportunity.

Colonies existed to produce essential raw materials cheaply, to provide an unlimited market for manufacturing goods, and to offer a minimum of economic competition. Competition by the colonists was nearly eliminated through laws such as the Woolens Act (1699), the Hat Act (1732), and the Iron Act (1750), which prohibited or limited local efforts at manufacturing.

For long decades before the conclusion of the French and British were too immersed in bitter rivalry with France to enforce their restrictive legislation. With the defeat of France, however, the British were able to turn their full attention to strict enforcement of colonial policy. The Sugar Act (1764), the Stamp Act (1765), the Tea Act (1773), and others imposed the severest restrictions upon colonial self-government.

The colonists were quick to reply. Americans more and more frequently joined together to oppose imperial measures, and after British soldiers had fired into Boston people popular resentment increased tremendously. The first Continental Congress that met in Philadelphia in September, 1774 marked the growing sentiment for independence. The War for Independence began in 1775.

Tom Paine`s enormously popular and influential pamphlet ‘’Common Sense’’, published in January, 1776, helped solidify Americans` rebellious spirits.

In July, 1776, the Second Continental Congress adopted Thomas Jefferson`s draft of the Declaration of Independence.